Valerius Flaccus is one of the most elusive literary figures of the Roman imperial period. Virtually nothing certain is known about him, beyond the fact that he wrote his epic Argonautica - no other works are attested - in the Flavian era (69-96 ce). For his life and career, there is no external evidence beyond a brief obituary notice by the rhetorician Quintilian: ‘‘We have lost a good deal recently in [the death of] Valerius Flaccus’’ (Inst. 10.1.90). This has enabled scholars to fix the death ofValerius at some point before 96 ce (the latest possible date for publication of Quintilian). Regarding his date of birth there is no indication whatsoever. Because of the paucity of external evidence, scholars have sought autobiographical clues from the Argonautica itself. Of such internal clues, most compelling are a reference in the proem to the Sibyl (the ‘‘Cymaean prophetess’’) and the mention of a sacred tripod residing in the poet’s own house (1.5-7). These lines have led to a widespread assumption that Valerius was a member of the college of priests in charge of the Sibylline books, the quindecimviri sacris faciundis. This hypothesis gains some marginal support from the allusion to the Bath of Cybele at Arg. 8.239-41, a rite that was supervised by the quindecimviri. If Valerius was a quindecimvir, then he was a Roman citizen of considerable means and social standing, almost certainly of the senatorial order. A number of scholars have rightly sounded a note of caution, however, pointing out the dangers of taking these lines as literal autobiography. It is conceivable that the narrating persona is presented as a member of a prestigious and notably ‘‘bookish’’ Roman priesthood for reasons ofliterary ‘‘authority’’ - much like the use of the vates (prophet) figure in earlier Augustan poetry (Barchiesi 2001b).
Valerius’ epic has been transmitted to our time unfinished. It breaks off abruptly 467 lines into the eighth book, as the Argonauts, having acquired the golden fleece, attempt to evade their Colchian pursuers. It is possible that the Argonautica was completed and subsequently lost its ending through the vagaries of textual transmission; more likely, though, is that Valerius died before finishing it. Whatever the case, an issue of some importance is the intended length of the epic. Until well into the twentieth century most critics believed that it would have run to ten or twelve books, the latter matching the book total of Virgil’s Aeneid, which exerted a strong influence on Valerius. The critical tide has turned, however, since the important analysis advanced by Schetter (1959), which
Provides persuasive structural arguments (on which more below) in favor of a total of eight books. Since Book 8 breaks off at line 467 and none of the others exceeds 850-odd lines, it follows that less than 400 verses would have been added to complete the opus. How much more of the myth would have been covered in those additional lines is an open question, though anything beyond the return journey seems unlikely.
World History
